Albert a



( 0 Model.)

A. A. PAGE.

' LATGH'.

No. 429,948. Patented June 10, 1890.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ALBERT A. PAGE, OF NEII HAVEN, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THE SARGENT &COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

LATCH.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 429,948, dated June 10,1890.

Application filed September 23, 1889. Serial No. 324,756. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ALBERT A. PAGE, of New Haven, in the county of NewHaven and State of Connecticut, have invented a new Improvement inLatches; and I do hereby declare the following, when taken in connectionwith accompanying drawings and the letters of reference marked thereon,to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same, and which saiddrawings constitute part of this specification,

and represent, in

Figure 1, a View in front elevation of one form which my improved latchmay assume, with the strike separated from it and shown just to oneside; Fig. 2, a view of the latch in end elevation looking toward thenose of the bolt; Fig. 8, a view of the strike in inside elevation, andshowing the cam thereof in its relation to the nose of the bolt; Fig. 4,a View of the latch in inside elevation, with the retracted position ofthebolt indicated bybroken lines.

My invention relates to an improvement in latches, the object being toreduce frictional 2 5 resistance and strain to the minimum, and toproduce a simple, strong, and reliable latch of few and readily made andassembled parts.

WVith these ends in view my invention consists in certain details ofconstruction and combinations of parts, as will be hereinafterdescribed, and pointed out in the claim.

As herein shown, the latch-bolt consists of abeveled nose A, having ashort shank B, and of a tail C, merging into the said shank and formingabout a right angle with the same and the nose. Two small pivots D D,respectively formed upon the opposite faces of the bolt at the anglethereof, enter shallow pockets E and F, the former being located in oneof the outer corners of the chamber G in the case H, and the other beinglocated in one of the corners of the plate or cap I, which closes thesaid chamber, and which is secured to the case by a screw J entering athreaded stud K rising within the said chamber. The nose of The saidbeveled nose of the bolt cooperates with a cam N of opposite inclinationformed upon the inner edge of the strike 0, which conforms in generaloutline and ornamentation to the case H. A pin P, formed upon the innerface of the nose, is provided for the engagement of one end of a coiledspring, the opposite end whereof is held in place between two small carsQ Q, projecting outward with a slight upward inclination from theperforated stud R, which forms a bearing for the spindle S of the knobT. The operation of the said spring is to sustain the nose of the boltin a normally-thrown position, in which it is shown in full lines in thedrawings. The inner face of the tail of the bolt is provided near itsforward end with a tooth U, and at its rear and outer end with aninclined bearing-surface V, being cut away, as at WV, be tween the saidtooth and bearing-surface to clear the stud R, before mentioned, and thetwo-armed lever X, which is rigidly attached to the inner end of theknob-spindle. The forward end of the said lever X is provided with abent finger Y, which co-operates with the tooth U to turn the bolt onits pivots, and retract its nose, as shown by broken lines in Fig. 4 ofthe drawings. The opposite end of the said lever is provided with astraight finger Z, for co-operation with the inclined 8o bearing-surfaceV upon the tail of the latch in turning the latch upon its pivots andrctracting its nose. Under this construction the nose of the bolt isretracted within the case by turning the knob in either direction, thebent finger and tooth operating to retract the bolt by its tail bypulling the same inward, and the bearing-surface and strai ht armoperating to retract the bolt by lifting its tail and thus swinging itsnose inward.

My improved latch operates with very little friction and with theminimum of strain upon its several parts, and particularly inautomatically relocking when the winding bevel of the nose of the boltengages with the op- 5 positely-inclined cam of the strike, causing thebolt to retire with only a small surface, which is constantly changed incontact with the strike.

By making the nose of the bolt and its catch too at a right angle witheach other, and pivoting them within the case at a point eccentric tothe knob-spindle, I am enabled to make the parts very strong, and at thesame time heavy and compact, whereby I secure a very strong latch ofsmall size. Moreover, the leverage obtained by my improved constructioncauses the bolt to respond very quickly to the turning of the knob.

It is apparent that in carrying out my invention some changes from theconstruction herein shown and described may be made. I would thereforehave it understood that I do not limit myself to the exact form andarrangement of parts herein set forth; but hold myself at liberty tomake such changes and alterations as fairly fall within the spirit andscope of my invention.

What I claim is In a latch, the combination, with a knob and aknob-spindle, of an operating-lever having a short bent finger extendingforward and a longer straight finger extending rearward and in line withthe said short finger, and a bolt hung diagonally in front of theoperating-1cver, and having a beveled nose and a tail located at anangle with respect to each other, the latter extending parallel with thefingers of the operating-lever, and having a tooth for engagement by thebent finger of the lever, and a bearing-surface for engagement by thestraight finger thereof, and the bent finger and tooth co-operating topull the bolt inward, and the straight finger and bearing-surfaceco-operating to retract the bolt by lifting its tail, substantially asdescribed.

ALBERT A. PAGE. \Vitnesses:

WM. S. 00010;, C. L. BALDWIN.

